8515 Penfield Ave
Winnetka, CA 91306
Founded in 1987 by Terry Brussel and Brian Gitt
Based on the philosophy of Family Synergy,
Founded 1971 by Hy Levy and Pat LaFollette
LIVE THE DREAM FOUNDED 1987
UPCOMING EVENTS
Saturday June 19, 2021 11 am to 4 pm
Dragon Riders of (Poly/Group Living) Pern by Anne McCaffery
Led by Mark Merlino and Rodney O’Reilly (founders of Furry Fandom)
Saturday July 17, 2021 10am – Late Evening – In Person – Zoom till 5pm
FAMILY SYNERGY 50TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
With Special Guests Pat LaFollette, Co-Founder of Family Synergy
and Oberon Zell Founder of Church of All Worlds
ALL LTD MEETINGS ARE NOW LIVE & ON ZOOM!
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/3175971626?pwd=NWVjU3A2M0I2Q29IUkI4L1lMRzd2QT09
Meeting ID: 317 597 1626 Passcode: Heinlein
Find us Always here on the 3rd Saturday from 11A-12:30P Pacific Time. This will be our Zoom ID from now on.
Please visit the Live the Dream website at www.livethedream.org to view current events, past articles, etc. Terry Brussel-Rogers is a Certified Clinical Hypnotherapist, Life Coach, & a 4th generation Matchmaker. We provide poly relationship counseling, hypnotic jealousy release, success coaching, and other services. See www.acesuccess.com or call (800) LIFE MATES (543-3628)
Live the Dream is an education and support group for those who, originally inspired by the writings of Robert Heinlein, Robert Rimmer, and Marion Zimmer Bradley, are now ready to LIVE such alternative lifestyles as cooperative living, open relationships, and group marriage. Many of our concepts on multiply committed relationships come from Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land and Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Live the Dream also sponsors a nest of Church of All Worlds, the real-life, over fifty-year-old spiritual movement inspired by Stranger in a Strange Land.
EVENTS
All Live the Dream LIVE events are 11am-4pm on 3rd Saturdays at 8515 Penfield Ave in Winnetka, Ca. 91306 (unless otherwise specified), Timing is different, but location the same for Family Synergy 50th Anniversary Celebration
For all events: RSVP/more info call the LTD Hotline (818) 886-0069
The silver lining of Safer at Home experience: From now on, all our meetings will be available on Zoom for those who can’t get to us in person.Some will be hosted by speakers in other areas too.We will be doing both Zoom and Live starting in April — Zoom 11-12:30 and Live 11-4.
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We had hoped to have a FAMILY SYNERGY 50TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION at Freedom Acres on July 17, 2021, but it is still closed for COVID as of the writing of our June Newsletter.Obviously, an event like this would ordinarily have been promoted and planned for months before its scheduled time. Since we were not able to do that, this celebration must wait until the spring or summer of 2022. This will be a Zoom/Live event at our home in Winnetka, though we will arrange for the Zoom event to go on until 5 pm. Those who come in person will share pot luck meals or order food from local restaurants. We’ll break for hot tubbing and evening events at that time. Presenters will include Pat LaFollette, co-founder of Family Synergy, Oberon Zell, founder of Church of All Worlds based on Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land.Glen Olson, Terry’s co-author of the book Fifty Years of Polyamory in America (Through Our Eyes) will be presenting with Terry in person or on Zoom.
If YOU are coming in person (or just want more info), do let us know by calling our hot line. 818-886-0069
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Saturday June 19, 2021 11 am to 4 pm (Zoom 11-12:30)
Dragon Riders of (Poly/Group Living) Pern by Anne McCaffery
Led by Mark Merlino and Rodney O’Reilly (founders of Furry Fandom, a group house which has been together for decades) and Dreena Grace who is quite an authority on Anne McCaffery and all her Dragon Rider books as well as one who has formed her own unique Nest of blood/water family…
Both the books and the on-line role-playing experiences available NOW will be discussed. Want to ride a dragon? Participate in a Mating Flight? Perhaps you can—in Virtual Reality.
In a world protected from life destroying spores “Thread” by genetically engineered fire breathing dragons bonded at their hatching to empathic human dragon riders, the social structure is an unusual one. The Holds have the purpose of housing people during thread fall and, in the century, or more between such Falls. They are supposed to be strong enough to keep the inhabitants safe and to provide support to the Weyers which house dragons and dragon riders. They are generally large extended family arrangements with Aunties, Uncles, a Lord and Lady Holder, many children and servants in this central Hold. There are many individual cottages for the smaller households of such a hold, but all inhabitants can be sheltered in the big Hold during Thread Fall. Sexual Mores appear to be fairly monogamous in the Holds, though dragonriders do go on Search for teenage boys and girls who could become Dragon Riders. Sometimes the male riders will woo such potential queen riders spreading “dragon seed”, one way of passing on their empathic genes to insure more dragon riders.This is not always acceptable to the parents of such young ladies.The Weyers have a more free sexuality.The Golden Queen dragons are ridden by women, Browns and Bronzes by males. Bronzes mate with Queens. However, males as well as females can bond with and ride female fire breathing green dragons.Browns mate with Greens and Greens mate with each other as well. When a rider’s dragon makes her mating flight, the passions of their dragons causes the riders to mate in their own way. In the Weyr caves which house dragons and their riders, sexual mores are different from those on the rest of the planet of Pern since dragons may not honor the current romantic bonds of their riders when mating. Since the Weyers are group living arrangements in any case, children resulting from such liaisons are raised by the “village” with a foster mother and/or father doing the primary parenting.The latest books by Anne McCaffery’s daughter are not only Poly, but actually offer what amounts to a how to on building poly families.
1pm Pot luck lunch— Bring healthy and delicious dishes to share.
Terry’s birthday June 15—cake for her. Do you have a June Birthday? Tell us and your name will be on it, too!
2-4 pm Hot tubbing and/or listening to Pern inspired music—tends to be pretty Celtic. Schooling on Pern is done by Harpers from the Harper’s Hall where musically inclined lads and lassies are apprenticed as early teens to become storytellers, singers, composers and musicians.
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Saturday July 17, 2021 11am to Late Evening Sat/Sun morning In Person—Zoom till 5pm
FAMILY SYNERGY 50TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
With Special Guests:
Pat LaFollette, Co-Founder of Family Synergy and Oberon Zell Founder of Church of All Worlds
The planned schedule is:
10 am Live Meeting Starts—Decide on Dinner arrangements (all contribute to ordering out), who sleeps where, etc. Must RSVP to attend in person and to arrange to stay over.Limited crash space available inside. Tents ok in Back Yard, by arrangement only.
10:30am Zoom Meeting Starts Zoom and In Person attendees introduce themselves
11:30 Pat LaFollette Keynote Speech Family Synergy Founding, Philosophy, and Personal experiences with forming a triad in the 70s and raising kids as a triad. View of Polyamory in the Future
12:30 Pot luck lunch and informal Q&A—Do please have lunch with us virtually if you are attending on Zoom.
1:30 Fifty Years of Polyamory in America Through Our Eyes presented by co-authors Terry Brussel-Rogers and Glen Olson. View of Polyamory in the Future
2:30 Eileen and David Maxfield with partner Zarifa: Poly Day Camp Experiences & Present Experiences as Semi Residential Triad Sungaia. View of Polyamory in the Future particularly in cooperative living arrangements.
3:30 Oberon Zell Founding of Church of All Worlds, How Stranger in a Strange Land effected the real-life Church of All Worlds and View of Polyamory in the Future among Pagans and Neo Pagans
4:30 Q&A Panel including all presenters
5pm End of Zoom part of meeting
5:30 Dinner ordered out will be delivered.
6:30 Sensitivity Exercises verbal and non-verbal lead by Terry Brussel-Rogers
8pm Clothing Optional Hot Tub
9pm Guided Group massage with Celtic harp music playing. Massage table available 8 pm on.
Those who are staying over are welcome to join us for Sunday Brunch omelets deliciously produced by Craig Brussel Rogers.
Technical Staff for Zoom and in person: Audio Engineer Paul Gibbons assisted by Craig Brussel Rogers and Athena Gibbons.
THANK YOU TO ALL WHO ARE HELPING MAKE THIS EVENT A SPECIAL ONE!
FURRY FANDOM
Mark Merlino and Rodney O’Riley, our June 19, 2021 presenters, have been life partners for 35 years.Two of their significant others who met them through Furry oriented role playing on line share the house with them at present and others have been in and out over the years, some of them as members of their intimate network from all over the country.Mark and Rodney are among the founders of Furry Fandom connected with it since 1985.They hosted the annual Confurence for many years and their monthly Furry Parties were still going strong at their Prancing Skiltaire home on second Saturday evenings of each month—until the Pandemic. Many Furry fans identify with particular animals (fantasy or real) as their own alternate identities. It also involves romantic/erotic Science Fiction and Art picturing sentient animals from big cats and wolves to hawks and reptiles who may be fantasy or extraterrestrial in origin. They will show us some of this art to enjoy during this presentation as well as telling us something about how they have kept an open committed relationship together for 35+ years as well as a group house!
See The Fandom on YouTube for the whole story… www.youtube.com/watch?v=iv0QaTW3kEY
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Do you have a “What do you do when?” question for us, or any Poly related article for publication or WHAT EXPERIENCES/BOOK REVIEWS, ETC. THAT YOU CAN SHARE RELATING TO THE POLY LIFE STYLE? We’d like to run it here.
Please E-Mail to: newsletter@mail.livethedream.org Or mail it to 8515 Penfield Ave. Winnetka, Ca. 91306.
We will take any questionwith your solution or brainstorm and give it one or more of our own. Let’s have fun with this and learn from each other.
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Meet Ups & Other Group Events
NONE OF THIS IS COVID 19 UPDATED. GO TO THEIR WEBSITES TO SEE HOW EACH GROUP IS HANDLING IT.
Check out www.meetup.com/Loveopen & www.meetup.com/loving-more and other SoCal poly groups (40+ groups in the Greater LA Area!)
The Southern California Naturist Association Meetup http://www.meetup.com/nature-519
This is the largest non-landed clothing optional club in California
Other Poly info:
www.lovemore.com www.polyevents.blogspot.comhttp://openingup.net/resources/local-orginizations-u-s/
Other groups friendly to KARL HESS CLUB www.karlhessclub.org meets on the 3rd Monday at Dinah’s Family Restaurant, 6521 Sepulveda Blvd. (at Centinela), Culver City. Phone: (310) 645-0456 West L.A.
Burning Man Festival virtual or in person? For details www.burningman.com!
LTD DUES ARE $25.00 PER YEAR FOR ONE PERSON, $40 FOR A COUPLE, $10 EACH FOR ADDITIONAL PERSON(S) IN THE SAME HOUSE. DOUBLE THAT FOR FREE ATTENDANCE AT ALL REGULAR DAY TIME 3RD SATURDAY MEETINGS. TO BECOME A MEMBER OR TO RENEW YOUR MEMBERSHIP, PLEASE COMPLETE THE FOLLOWING FORM AND EITHER E-MAIL OR SNAIL MAIL IT TO THE ADDRESS LISTED BELOW. An E-Mail NEWSLETTER SUBSCRIPTION ONLY IS AVAILABLE FOR FREE. JUST BE SURE TO PROVIDE US WITH YOUR E-Mail ADDRESS. REGULAR MEETINGS ARE $5.00 WITH YOUR CURRENTLY PAID MEMBERSHIP CARD (FAMILY SYNERGY OR LIVE THE DREAM) WITHOUT MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS ARE $10.00.